RAREYJHE HORSE'S MASTER 
AND FRIEND 

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John S. Rarey and Cruiser. 

From a painting by Kellogg in 1860, now owned by his niece, Mrs. Sarali Jones 

Bunn, Columbus. 



SA.^. RAREY 



THE HORSE'S MASTER 
AND FRIEND 



SARA LOWE BROWN 



Reprinted from Ohio Archaeological and 
Historical Society Publications, October, igi6 



COLUMBUS, OHIO: 

THE F. J. HEER PRINTING CO. 

1916 






y^i 



TO MY FATHER 

THOMAS LAWRENCE LOWE 

THIS BOOK IS 

AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED 



NOV 20 1916 



RAREY, THE HORSE'S MASTER AND FRIEND. 



BY SARA LOWE BROWN. 

It is one of the honors of Frankhn county, Ohio, that early 
in the second quarter of the Nineteenth century, it produced, in 
the person of John Solomon Rarey, a man who bore to all the 
world the message that in kindness there is power. Ralph Waldo 
Emerson said of him that he had "turned a new leaf in civiliza- 
tion," while William Lloyd Garrison testified to his "fitness to 
teach the world a great and everywhere needed lesson of hu- 
manity." The young man was educated at the old Groveport 
academy. Bishop Washburn's school on Walnut creek and at 
Ohio Wesleyan University, but he found his message — that of 
kindness to animals, especially the horse — in the fields and 
stables of his father's farm. With this message that the rule 
of love is the condition of greatest achievement in the use of the 
horse, he proceeded, when he was but thirty-one, to the state 
capital, to Canada, to Europe. Africa and .\sia, proclaiming his 
gospel and working what seemed to be miracles in the taming of 
horses so vicious that all the methods known to brutal horse- 
breakers had failed to subdue them. His achievements were 
witnessed, applauded and honored by kings, emperors and 
savants, and he returned to his native land to make a tour from 
which he emerged with the praise of reformers, philanthropists 
and intellectuals generally. 

Mr. Rarey's great work was done within the period of ten 
years, and it was so well done that its influence will never be 
lost. It gave new vitality to the Societies for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals, and pvit a kindlier spirit into the methods 
of training horses for service in the armies, not only of this 
country, but also of England and France. It taught to the cab- 
men and carters of London, Paris, Edinburgh and other cities 



Copyright, 1916, Sara Lowe Brown. 

(5) 



6 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

the folly and wickedness of brutality to their animals and gave 
to lovers of the horse everywhere, both men and women, the real 
key to their successful management. 

Only a man of fine intelligence, good heart and real genius 
could have done all this. And that is precisely what John S. 
Rarey was. No one can read the reports of his lectures or the 
accounts of his demonstrations without being convinced that he 
was a man of extraordinary powers of speech, of pleasing per- 
sonality, of courage and of confidence never running to the 
extreme of egotism. He performed wonders, but he gave a 
reason for them and showed others how they could do as much, 
if they would. 

It was a rare lesson that Mr. Rarey taught — a lesson that 
men everywhere are too prone to forget. If it were applied to 
mankind, as one of his English admirers said, "Christianity 
would assign him a place among the Apostles." It is akin to the 
lesson that the world must learn again, if the nations are to be 
at peace. 

THE RAREY FAMILY. 

The Rarey family in America is traced back to Charles 
Rarey, who was born in Nord Ottensin, Hamburg, in 1744, and 
came, when a young man, to America as a trader in dry goods. 
Losing his fortune through the repudiation of Continental money, 
he turned to farming and, in 1778, married Margaret' Wolfe who, 
though of English descent, was of American birth. He was a 
tenant farmer in Maryland and later in Virginia. Of the eleven 
children born of this union, one, Nicholas, died. The others 
came with their parents, in 1806, to Ohio, the family settling on 
a purchased farm in Franklin county, on Walnut creek. They 
were among the early settlers of the county. Their farm was 
surrounded by forest in which there was an abundance of game, 
including bears and wolves which were often a menace to the 
stock. But Charles and his family of fearless, energetic boys 
were great hunters ; they retaliated on the wild animals and made 
merchandise of their furs, thus adding to the profits from their 
farming. Prosperity came as a result of this double industry, 
and farm after farm was added to the Rarey holdings. Charles 
Rarey died at the Walnut creek homestead, January 3, 1826, 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 7 

aged 82 years; his wife, Margaret Wolfe, died at the same place, 
October 10, 1839, aged 74 years; their remains are buried in the 
little cemetery near by. 

Adam Rarey, son of Charles and Margaret and father of 
John, was born in 1786, and at the age of 26 married Mary 
Catherine Pontius, a pretty young woman of Pennsylvania birth 
then living in Chillicothe. The couple for four or five years lived 
on a farm near the paternal home, but, annoyed by the over- 
flowing of Walnut creek and tempted by the opening of the public 




Graves of Charles and Margaret Rarey in the Cemetery on Little Walnut. 



road from Columbus to Lancaster, moved to another tract where, 
because their home was a convenient stopping place for travelers 
between Columbus and Lancaster, they opened, soon after the 
declaration of peace in 181 5, a house of ])ublic entertaimnent, 
maintaining it till Adam's death in 1839. 

It was in the brick house, erected by Adam Rarey ( the front 
walls of which were retained in the Rarey mansion, now re- 
modeled as the Hotel Elmont) that John Solomon Rarey was 
born. December 6, 1827. One of his earliest traits was an 
intense fondness for the farm horses and colts. When he was 



8 



Rarcv, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



three years old, it was his dehght to ride the plowhorse when his 
father or elder brother was working in the fields. When he was 
12, his father gave him a spirited bay colt to break, according to 
his own ideas. He did so, making the animal the marvel of the 
neighborhood. His fame spread, and men came hundreds of 
miles to be instructed by the boy in the training of horses ; so 
that, while he was yet a youth, he found himself in a prosperous 
business. 




Birthplace of John S. Rarey, Groveport, Ohio. Erected. in 1826. 



Convinced that the horse is an animal of higher intelligence 
than generally supposed and having decided to make horse- 
training his life-work, John went to Texas, where he spent sev- 
eral months in studying and training the wild horses of the 
plains. Kindness, firmness and patience were the essentials of 
his system, and to these qualities the wild horses yielded as 
readily as did those at his Ohio home. There he also owned and 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 9 

trained a team of elks which he often drove to the capital and 
to county fairs. 

OFF TO EUROPE. 

Now fairly launched on his great career, Mr. Rarey re- 
turned to Ohio and in 1856 gave a public exhibition of his art 
at the Ohio Stage Company's yard, Gay and Fifth streets, Co- 
lumbus. About the same time he published a small book con- 
taining the essentials of his method. The book had a large sale, 
and the principles it set forth are still employed in the training 
of the American cavalry horses. In 1857, with letters of intro- 
duction from Governor Salmon P. Chase, of Ohio, Mr. Rarey 
went to Toronto, where he gave a single exhibition before Sir 
Edmund Head. Governor-General of Canada, and the British 
army ofificers. Thence with other indorsements and letters of 
recommendation, he sailed for England, traveling with R. A. 
Goodenough, a Toronto merchant and amateur Ijreeder of horses. 
On the voyage, he was invited by two Englishmen to try his 
method on a vicious horse in which they were interested. < )n 
his arrival in Liverpool, November 29. he undertook the task, 
accomplishing it to their entire satisfaction. They cheerfully 
paid him the fee agreed upon, and so he had $100 in gold as the 
proceeds of his tirst six hours on English soil. The Liverpool 
Journal complimented him by describing him as "a perfect gen- 
tleman of easy address and great knowledge, not only of horses, 
but of men." 

The young American found no difficulty in enlisting the 
support of Sir Richard Airey, Lieutenant-General of the British 
army, and Prince Albert. Hearing of his skill, Queen Victoria 
expressed a desire to witness an exhibition, and arrangements 
were made for one at Windsor Castle before the royal family 
and suite. Here is Mr. Rarey's own account of it, written in 
a letter to his sister Margaret, under date of January 17, 1858: 

"After the royal family entered the Riding House, Queen 
Victoria and Prince Albert came in and to the front, where I 
was introduced to her Majesty and the Prince Consort, while 
sitting on the back of a large wild colt, which stood perfectly 
quiet with its head up. I, facing the party, with my hat in hand, 
made a short speech to the Queen. A drum was afterwards 



10 



Rarcy. fJic Horse's Master and Friend. 




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Letter of Recommendation by a Lithopolis Physician. 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 11 

handed me, which I beat with fury, without the horse exhibiting 
any signs of fear. 

"After taming a second horse, the riding master selected a 
horse belonging to Prince Albert, a wild, nervous animal. I was 
in a box stall alone with the horse for fifteen minutes. When 
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert entered, they found the animal 
lying down, and I lying beside him. with one of his hind feet 
under my head and the other over my chest. This so astonished 
them that they laughed. As the place was not large, all could 
not see ; so after the Queen and Prince Consort had looked, they 
stepped back to let others of the royal party have a look. After 
that, the Queen and Prince Consort came back, talking to me 
about the horse, inquiring if I could make him rise. I answered 
'Yes,' and commanded the animal to rise to his feet. They stood 
looking at the horse and said it was a wonderful performance, 
thanked me for the entertainment and departed. 

"After the exhibition, I was shown through the castle from 
kitchen to cellar, the state rooms and the Queen's private rooms. 
It was a very interesting sight. I also dined in the castle and, 
the next day, I received a note by the special command of the 
Queen, with a checque enclosed for $125. a gift for my enter- 
tainment. She also sent a messenger to know if I would again 
appear before her Majesty and the royal guests in attendance 
for the royal marriage. I accepted the invitation and will have 
the honor of addressing more royalty, perhaps than has ever 
been brought together on any previous occasion." 

Of this same performance before the Queen and her suite, 
the London Times of January 25. 1858, said : 

"On that occasion the subjects on which Mr. Rarey operated were 
three in number. One was a fine spirited black horse of high nervous 
temperament, which had been returned to Mr. Anderson, of Piccadilly (of 
whom he had been bought for a large sum of money) on the ground of 
his being restive and all but unmanageable. This animal, it is but right 
to say, had been seen and handled by Mr. Rarey, at Mr. Anderson's 
stable, previous to his being taken to Windsor. At the first interview 
with the horse at Piccadilly, he was placed in a loose box, which Mr. 
Rarey entered, cracking a whip. Startled by this unusual exhibition of 
violence, the animal struck out with both his hind leg? and uttered a 
kind of savage yell. The company who had assembled to witness the 



12 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

experiment were then asked to withdraw, and Mr. Rarey was left alone 
with the horse. On being called in again, in less than a quarter of an 
hour, they were amazed to find the animal prostrate on his side, among 
the straw in the stall, with his head slightly raised, and Mr. Rarey, whom 
he was eyeing without the least symptom of alarm, lying beside him. 
Mr. Rarey remained with him in this position for some time, during 
which he knocked the horse's fore and hind hoofs together, made a 
pillow of his thighs and finally got up and ran a heavy wheelbarrow up 
to and around the still prostrate creature, without producing in him the 
slightest sensation of fear. 

"The next subject was a young unbroken colt, brought from a farm 
of Prince Albert in the vicinity, which had never been liandled in any 
way and which Mr. Rarey had never before seen. This colt was led in 
by a halter and left alone with the horse tamer, who intimated a wish 
that the company would retire for a few minutes to the farther end of 
the building. After the lapse of about a quarter of an hour, the royal 
party were summoned to return, and then they saw, as in the former 
case, this wild colt lying on the ground, and the horse tamer by his side, 
who sat upon him and handled his legs, feet and every other part by 
turns — a process during which the creature remained wholly passive. 

"After Mr. Rarey had parted with the colt, a handsome bay charger, 
belonging to the Prince Consort, was brought to him. This horse, one of 
high spirit, which had always shown great restlessness while being 
mounted, and a constant tendency to take fright, would, it was thought, 
almost defy Mr. Rarey's attempts to tame him ; but the result was as 
successful as in the two previous instances. In a short time, the horse 
tamer had him down also, as submissive as all the rest, and was seen 
crawling among his legs, sitting upon his shoulders and hips and knock- 
ing his hoofs together. Then, bidding the horse rise, which he did in- 
stantly, Mr. Rarey jumped upon his back and by turns hold an umbrella 
over his head and beat a tattoo on a drum, the hitherto proud and rest- 
less animal now owning subjection to a new master, remaining the while 
almost as motionless as a statue." 

According to invitation, Mr. Rarey gave his second exhi- 
bition before royalty, January zt,, 1858, in the Riding School 
attached to the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace. His audi- 
ence, on that occasion, included the Queen, the Prince Consort, 
the Princess Royal, the Prince of Wales, Prince Alfred and 
other members of the royal family, with the ladies of the Court 
and most of the foreign princes and distinguished visitors then 
in London, including Prince Frederick William of Prussia, the 
Prince of Prussia, Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia, Prince 
Albert of Prussia. Prince Frederick Albert of Prussia, Prince 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 13 

Adalbert of Prussia, Prince Hohenzollern Sigmaringen, the Duke 
of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. the Duke of Brabant, the Count of 
Flanders, Prince William of Baden, Prince Edward of Saxe- 
Weimer and Prince Julius of Holstein Glucksburg; also the 
Duke of Wellington, Major General Sir Richard Airey. Lord 
Alfred Paget, Clerk Marshal ; Colonel Hood, Clerk Marshal to 
the Prince Consort and Major Groves, Crown Equerry. 

At this second exhibition. Mr. Rarey was assisted by Lord 
Alfred Paget, to whom had been communicated his secret of 
horse-control, as well as to Sir Richard Airey and Colonel Hood. 
This from the London Times shows that Mr. Rarey 's power 
was not personal to him : 

"Lord Alfred took for his subject a beautiful grey pony belonging 
to the Prince of Wales. He was left alone with the pony for a few 
minutes in the riding school, and on the admission of the royal party, it 
was prostrate on the ground, with his lordship sitting, caressing it, hand- 
ling its feet and legs, resting on its haunches and in all respects treating 
it in a manner proving its complete subjection to him. That over, Mr. 
Rarey appeared with the black horse from Anderson's, in Piccadilly, to 
which reference has been made. Placing himself at one end of the 
riding school, he called to the animal which he had left at the other, 
and it immediately cantered toward him in a playful manner. It lay 
down at liis bidding or followed him like a dog around the building. 
When down, a plank was laid upon its shoulders, up which Lord Paget 
ran a wheelbarrow. Finally, when the horse had regained his legs, he 
was mounted by Mr. Rarey who sat on the animal's crupper with his 
back to the head, beating a drum and cracking a whip over him, this 
treatment resulting in neither motion nor fear on the part of the horse. 

"One of the fine stud of cream-colored horses belonging to her 
Majesty was next subjected to the manipulation of Mr. Rarey, with an 
equally surprising and successful result, so far as laying the animal, 
which is an entire horse, down was concerned, and handling him all 
over with the utmost freedom. Besides the frequent display of some 
vicious propensities, this particular animal of late has never permitted 
anybody to ride him ; but he allowed Mr. Rarey to mount him without 
offering the least resistance. With this the exhibition terminated, and 
the Queen and her illustrious visitors, by whom it was witnessed with the 
most evident tokens of interest and wonder, took their departure." 

At the wedding in St. James Palace, the following morning. 
Mr. Rarey was an invited guest. 



14 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



HE TAMES CRUISER. 

Seeing what Mr. Rarey did was quickly followed by specu- 
lation as to how he did it. Sir Richard Airey and the others to 
whom the information had been given at once testified that in 
the treatment that had not been seen, there was nothing of 
cruelty, of tricks, of drugs, of mesmerism or any other similar 




Cruiser Bridled and Untamed. 



influence ; that his treatment was one of extreme kindness and 
tenderness toward the animal, the object being to convince him 
that man is his natural master and friend, and to elicit his con- 
fidence and kindly regard. His appeal, they declared, was, as 
he said, to "the intellect and afifections of the horse." But that 
did not dispose of all the doubters. 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 15 

"If Mr. Rarey would set criticism at naught," wrote Lord. 
Dorchester, "let him come down to Murrell's Green with a few 
of his aristocratic friends and try Cruiser. If he can ride him 
as a hack, I guarantee him immortality and an amount of ready 
money that would make a British bank director's mouth water." 
That was a challenge, indeed ! Cruiser, sired by Venison, 
dammed by Little Red Rover, was bred by Lord Dorchester in 
1852, and from a foal had been considered vicious; he was al- 
ways troublesome to handle, and showed temper on every oppor- 
tunity. On the road from Danebury to Greaywell, he went on 
his knees and tore the ground up with his teeth. Dorchester had 
seen him lean against the wall of his box: and kick and scream 
for ten minutes together. For days he would allow no one to 
enter his box and, on one occasion tore an iron bar, one inch 
thick, in two with his teeth. But he was of great racing stock 
and had himself made one appearance, as a two-year-old, at New- 
market, when he was beaten a neck, after a close finish, by the 
Duke of Bedford's Para. In consequence of going amiss. Cruiser 
never started again, but at the time of the challenge, six colts 
and seven fillies were to his credit. However, he was the torment 
and menace of all who had him in charge, and his value had 
depreciated from $15,000 to $10,000; it had even been proposed, 
for the safety of his keepers to deprive him of his sight. At 
RawclilYe, he was always exhibited by a groom with a bludgeon 
in his hand, and few were bold enough to venture into his yard, 
the cordial wish of every visitor apparently being that some 
friendly bullet would lay him low. 

Mr. Rarey promptly accepted the challenge and asked that 
Cruiser be sent to him in London, but Lord Dorchester replied 
that Mr. Rarey must come to the horse. So it was done, Mr. 
Rarey finding Cruiser a prisoner in a brick stable with a solid 
oak door. For three years the horse had worn an eight-pound 
rriuzzle of iron with a bar in front of his mouth so that he could 
eat only by licking the feed up with his tongue. The quarters 
v/cre cramped for successful operation but the situation had to 
be accepted and, accompanied by Lords Dorchester and Burleigh, 
Mr. Rarey set about the task which was to make or mar his 
English fame. Twice Cruiser flew at the trainer with a fierce 



16 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



bellow, but the latter escaped only to return to the attack and at 
length succeeded in tying Cruiser's head to the rack. This sense 
of restraint maddened the horse, the blood vessels of his head* 




Halter, Iron-bound Muzzle and Gag Worn by Cruiser before He was 

Tamed. 



dilated and his frenzy for nearly twenty minutes was such that 
Lord Dorchester begged Mr. Rarey not to peril his life and to 
think no more of the one hundred pound bond which he had 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 17 

entered into to return the horse cured in three months. But 
Mr. Rarey knew the game better than did either Dorchester or 
the horse. Gradually the latter's fury was spent and the way 
was opened to other proofs to the animal that he had met his 
master. At the end of three hours Cruiser bore Lord Dorchester 
up and down the straw yard, as he had previously borne Mr. 
Rarey. Later, he trotted, led behind a cart, to Virginia Water 
for the night. The next day, Cruiser was led to London behind 
an open buggy, where he became the chief exhibit in proof of the 
trainer's prowess. Queen Victoria was delighted and she and 
the royal children were frequent visitors, caressing Cruiser in 
regret for the hard usage to which he had been subjected. Four 
times she witnessed exhibitions by Mr. Rarey, asserting that for 
her there could be no better amusement. 

Now began a period of triumph for the American. A class 
of two thousand persons was formed, headed l)y the Queen and 
the Prince Consort and including princes, dukes, earls, duchesses, 
marchionesses and other representatives of the nobility, each sub- 
scriber paying a fee of $52.50. Mr. Rarey's popularity ran high, 
due not only to his marvelous successes but also to his quiet, 
gentlemanly deportment and unassuming manners. Verses and 
music were composed and dedicated to him. There was the 
Rarey Waltz, written by his highly gratified pupil, Matilda 
Langen and played at Her Majesty's state ball by Mr. Weippert's 
band. One of the literary tributes follows : 

A SOXNET 

To Mr. Rarey, the Horse Tamer. 
If it be great to conquer with the sword 

And bend unwilling captives to our will ; 
If it be great, by utterance of a word, 

To cause destruction and death's empire fill ; 
If, when the young, bold Macedonian king 

First rode the horse, companion of his lame, 
None else dare ride, the very air did ring 

With long-continued plaudits of his name. 
And his delighted father called aloud, 

"My kingdom is too small for such a son !" 



18 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

Hast thou not reason to be truly proud 

Who all such feats of triumph hast outflone, 

For none are like to thine, since they embrace 
The noblest triumphs in the noblest race ! 

— Catherine. 

Another who lauded the American in verse was Mr. Ham- 
ilton McCarthy, sculptor, who also added to Johnson's Dictionary 
the word, "Rareyfy," which he defined as a verb, active, mean- 
ing "to tame a horse by kindness; to win by love; to mollify by 
the oil of kindness ; to reclaim a badly broken horse ; to cure 
madness by excessive kindness." The sculptor's poem runs : 

RAREY, THE EQUINE KING. 

" 'Mongst all the wonders known of late 
Is Rarey's rising fame. 
How he subdues the vicious Horse 
And can the wildest tame. 

The hopeless Cruiser he has tamed 

And savage Stafford — they 
Have winced their spirit to his eye 

And owned his gentle sway. 

The fearless Zebra he's subdued. 

Despite his tameless fame. 
To own there's one Creation's lord 

Has more than the mere name. 

My lord. His Grace of Wellington, 

Master of the Horse is called. 
Rides with the Queen in times of state. 

By patent right installed. 

The Horse's master Rarey is. 

And noble proofs has shown 
In presence of illustrious hosts 

Who all his genius own. 

Yea, e'en the Queen — Prince Albert, too — 

Paid tribute to his fame. 
Welcomed the Hero of the Horse 

And saw how he could tame. 



Rarcy. the Horse's Master and Friend. 19 

Cruiser, who late like maniac 

Amongst the tombs long dwelt, 
Is now so meek that e'en the Queen 

His gentle head has felt. 

That high-blood class. Aristocrat, 

The nobles of the land. 
Came boldly to the Equine Chief, 

Nor spared the generous hand. 

That noble race knew no distrust, 

Nor grudged the laborer's fee. 
But thought it small comparison 

The coming boon to see. 

Ten guineas they two thousand times, 

Or e'en ten thousand more. 
Most gladly would have handed down 

To know what was in store. 

The charmed power, at length revealed. 

Reproved the proud surmise — 
Proved 'twas no drug, mesmeric art. 

Concealed by specious guise. 

The Equine Chief, of gentle sway, 

By mind o'er mind prevails. 
Not force 'gainst force or brute 'gainst brute 

To triumph never fails. 

Love in the Horse's King begets 

Love in the creature, too ; 
Affection's greetings there are seen, 

Most genuinely true. 

By gentle means the wildest colt 

Yields to the master mind, 
Submits his noble spirit up 

And finds that man is kind. 

No cruel goad, relentless spur. 

Contortion hobbled, jocked — 
Abstaining from those coward tricks. 

His noble heart is shocked. 



20 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

In all the world no country is 
So fine a Horse can show ; 

For beauty, symmetry and strength 
We need no further go. 

Till Rarey came we could not tame, 

Save by the cruel thong 
And hosts of dire contrivances. 

As futile as they're strong. 

The breaker-in has now no place 
For cruel treatment more. 

But now must train himself to see 
The better plan in store. 

Yea, more ! Let legislators learn 

To Rareyfy the law 
And take a page from Rarey's book 

And from its morals draw. 

Let breakers, grooms and owners all, 
With skill if they would tame, 

Learn their unbridled hearts to rule 
And keep subdued the same. 

Let gospel teachers learn to show 
How love begets its kind ; 

Deal not so much damnation round. 
But Rareyfy mankind. 

What human Cruisers they'd reclaim, 
And two-legged zebras turn 

To ornament society 

And peaceful laurels earn. 

If you have got a tameless wife 
And fain would have a strifeless life, 

Of patience be not chary; 
Show her that you're her kindest friend, 
Sincerely proving 'tis your end 

To treat her a la Rarey. 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 21 

Wife-beating then will cease to be 
The sin that shames societ\-. 

So rife in our day ; 
Wives then will know the Rarey charm 
Has no intent to do them harm, 

And joy beneath its sway. 

How shall that good Society, 

Known as the Animals' Friend, 
Acknowledge Rarey's patronage 

Or see when it shall end? 

He comes, a Legion to their aid, 

A rich donation pays ; 
He brings a principle to work 

The marvel of our days. 

A living principle. I say, 

A beacon — point of sight — 
A proof there needs no cruelty 

To train a Horse aright. 

This is worth preserving, if not for its Hterary excellence, 
at least as evidence that Mr. Rarey had captivated the English 
public. His performances, which were closely observed, not only 
worked a complete transformation in the methods of horse-train- 
ing in a land proud of its horses, but, as the sculptor-poet in- 
dicates, set people thinking of the power of kindness, generally 
too much held in reserve. As ]^Ir. McCarthy, in his verses, in- 
dicates, Mr. Rarey tamed a zebra as he did the horses, and for 
the first time in the history of the world, his audience one day 
had the pleasure of seeing this hitherto untamable animal quietly 
ridden into the arena by a groom. 

At a dinner given by the coach proprietors, horse-dealers and 
livery stable-keepers of England, at Willis' rooms, King street, 
St. James, in aid of a provident fund belonging to their associated 
trades, the chair was occupied by the Earl of Shelbourne, who 
was supported by the Earl of Cork, Lord Edward Thynne, Hon. 
Sydney Pierrepont, Count Bathyany, Mr. H. Baring, M. P., 
Mr. Rarey, Mr. Tattersall and others. Grace having been said 
and the usual loyal and patriotic toasts duly honored, the Hon. 
S. Pierrepont said that he took credit to himself for being the 



22 



Rarev, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



oldest horse-breaker in England ; that more horses had passed 
through his hands during the three score years he had been in 
the profession than through those of any other man in the United 







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Autographs of Some of Mr. Rarey's Pupils. 

Kingdom; but there was now present a gentleman whose great 
ability as a horse tamer had given him a general notoriety. He 
referred to Mr, Rarey who had tamed Cruiser and the zebra and 
he v/ould now call upon them to drink to Mr. Rarey's health. 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 23 

The latter, responding, expressed his appreciation of the com- 
pHment and said that, having been at all times fond of horses, 
he had made their habits his study. It was from what he con- 
sidered a correct understanding of those habits and the temper 
of the animals that he derived the power that he had over them. 
He said he had no desire to play the charlatan and at the very 
moment of his arrival in England, he had waited on Sir Richard 
Airey and other gentlemen and had ofifered, as a proof of his 
humane mode of treatment, to lodge a large sum of money in 
their hands. Interested, as he was, in everything that concerned 
the horse, he could not but approve of the fund, in the interest 
of which the dinner was given, and hope it would enjoy unin- 
terrui)te(l ])ros])erity. 

In August, 1858, Mr. Goodenough, the Toronto merchant 
who had accompanied Mr. Rarey to England, returned home, 
their partnership not having been profitable to Mr. Rarey, as he 
did not assist in any way in the exhibitions. 

SOME GUESSKS AS TO HIS METHOD. 

With all the praise of Mr. Rarey, there came also the attempt 
to imitate and to teach what he was teaching. One of these 
imitators was so bold that Mr. Rarey authorized the Messrs. 
Tattersall to pay one thousand guineas to any man who could 
satisfy them that he was able to teach the Rarey method of 
horse-taming unless he had first learned it from Mr. Rarey. This 
offer brought some amusing claims. A. V. D. Way. a German 
who was teaching modern languages in Dublin, wrote : 

"Having seen Mr. Rarey's letter, these lines are to state that that 
gentleman's secret consists in looking sharply into the eyes of the horse 
to be tamed and giving him some bread or other soft eaLable, moistened 
with the tamer's own sweat. He looks sharply into the eyes of the 
horse because the horse cannot bear the brilliancy of the human eye, seeks 
to avoid the same and becomes by this manner afraid of the tamer, and 
begins to become tamer and tamer. He gives him some bread or other 
things moistened with sweat in order to make him do everything he likes, 
even to follow him like a dog, which the horse does as soon as he has 
eaten something having the flavor of the tamer's sweat. It is possible 
that Mr. Rrarey employs but one of these two named, but that can oe 
no reason why the promised thousand guineas should not be paid to m;. 



24 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

I knew this secret these twenty-five years and having, therefore, not 
learned it from Mr. Rarey, either directly or indirectly, I hope and trust 
I will hear from you by return post. Pardon me this trouble, gentlemen, 
and believe me your humble ob'd't servant 

A. V. D. Way, from Germany. 

"P. S. It strikes me that Mr. Rarey may say or think some words 
in using the above, which words nobody might be able to guess, done in 
order to avoid the payment of the 1000 guineas, but these words or other 
things are of no effect and can be omitted. 

A. V. D. Way." 

Another letter, written from the Bristol Coffee House, ran : 

"Believing that I have discovered Mr. Rarery's method of taming 
horses, I have taken the liberty of communicating with you upon the 
subject, and of course, if I am correct, laying claim to the ofifered re- 
ward. If I am right, it is neither more nor less than the use of magni- 
fying spectacles, placed over the eyes of the animal so as to terrify him 
with the apparent immensity of objects. I have been led into this belief 
from the fact of my often having seen horses in the Crimea brought to 
a sudden stand and exhibit great symptoms of terror at sight of a camel, 
and the well known retentiveness of memory in the horse would assist 
in strengthening me in my belief. Mr. Rarey's remark, as reported, 
about Cruiser being about to have been deprived of sight also is an ad- 
ditional reason, because Mr. Rarey's audience would at once have seen 
the inutility of depriving an animal of the only organ through which a 
wholesome and yet human dread could be imparted. Awaiting the honor 
of your reply (prevent the publication of this idea, if it should but 
slightly dififer from Mr. Rarey's mode) I am. gentlemen, your humble 
ob'd't servant, 

N, CORRINGSBY." 

The only excuse for the prevalence of any mystery about 
Mr. Rarey's method of training horses was his effort, in the 
earlier days of his career, to protect himself financially. He 
gave lessons for a fee and sold a little book of instructions and 
required every one who bought a book to pledge himself to keep 
the book private, not to let anybody read it and, in handling 
horses, to prevent anybody from learning the secret and not to 
instruct anybody in his art. Later, when his purposes had been 
served, he publicly released everybody from the pledge and was 
glad to have the rule of kindness everywhere proclaimed and 
practiced. 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



25 



> 



r 






26 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

In his earlier study of the nature of the horse, Mr. Rarey 
observed that the animal acts upon knowledge received through 
his senses, seeing, hearing, smelling and feeling ; that he uses 
the nose as human beings do the hand to touch and feel every 
object that is new to him and determine whether or not it is 
something to be feared. In his boyhood, Mr. Rarey once turned 
a team of driving horses into a lot, in which there were two or 
three stumps, on one of which he had thrown a buffalo robe. 
The first horse, seeing the robe, was frightened. He ran to a 
point as far away from the robe as he could get and, with head 
extended, walked around and around the stump, each time getting 
a little nearer, until he could touch the robe with his nose. On 
the first contact, he jumped back but, seeing that it did not move, 
he touched it again, finally seizing it with his teeth and tossing 
it up and then jumping back again. After learning that the robe 
could not harm him, the horse seized the robe and dragged it 
about the lot. That was the boy's first lesson in the nature of 
the horse, but it was most valuable. It was the foundation stone 
of his whole theory. 

So, in his lectures he declared that the only way to tame 
or to train a horse is to work with, and not against, his intelli- 
gence, "for the horse has intelligence and every good trait of 
character which, if cultivated, will make him kind, docile and 
gentle." The horse must become acquainted with the person 
or object before he can have confidence, and his only means to 
acquaintanceship are the senses. So, in coming into the presence 
of a strange horse, Mr. Rarey approached slowly, spoke gently, 
and stroked him lightly and kindly. Having established friend- 
ship with the horse, he proceeded to prove to the animal that he 
was master. For this purpose he used two straps and a surcingle. 
One strap he buckled around the fetlock, raising one front foot; 
then he adjusted the surcingle around the horse's body, fastened 
the second strap, with a running loop, to the other foreleg, pass- 
ing the end through the surcingle and held it in his hand. Thus, 
at the desired moment, he brought the horse to his knees and 
then to a lying posture. There were times when this was done 
with great dif^culty, but firmness, courage and kindness always 
won sooner or later ; and when the horse recognized that his 



Rarcv. the Horse's Master and Friend. 27 

friend was also his master, there was no further trouble. The 
muscles of the animal's legs relaxed, and the trainer's head was 
as safe at the horse's heels as it would have been on a downy 
pillow. Of course, there was nothing in the invention of the 
straps or in the recumbent posture, except that no other practical 
mode had been discovered, at once and lastingly to subdue the 
force and stubbornness of the animal, without a violent contest 
which must always irritate, frighten and perhaps ruin the most 
gentle subject. 

Replying to the charge that he used drugs, magic and witch- 
craft. ]\Ir. Rarey, in one of his lectures, said: "The absurdity 
of this notion is apparent when we consider that, if the horse 
could be tamed by any of these methods, we could apply them 
with the same efficacy upon children — upon the human family. 
If any man tells you that he has a recipe for taming horses, try 
it upon yourself and judge of its effect upon the horse. If you 
are not knocked to the ground by the potency of the drug, then 
believe me it will have no more effect upon the horse." 

Mr. Rarey did not claim to be able, in a single lesson, to 
redeem a horse forever from vicious ways. What he did do 
was to indicate beyond all possibility of doubt the true mode of 
treatment. He had to leave to others, by constant and patient 
repetition, to lead the once unruly and evil-minded horse to that 
constant and kindly service of which, as he believed, every 
animal is cajiable. 

OTHKR ENGLISH EXPERIENCES. 

It was in 1858 that an American circus visited London 
and, with a view to drawing patronage, hired Cruiser of Mr. 
Rarey for exhibition in the ring. The horse was to be managed 
by Mr. Cook, the ringmaster. In due course, the latter came 
forward and briefly recounted the wonderful history of the ani- 
mal, exhibiting to the audience the heavy muzzle and chain halter 
with which he had been confined. Then he gave a signal for 
the entrance of Cruiser. There was a suppressed murmur of 
voices for a moment, the doors were swung back and Cruiser, 
with every eye fixed on him, walked quietly into the ring, led 
by the groom. Mr. Cook attempted to show the several details 



28 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



of the Rarey process, but did his work at arm's length and mani- 
fested such bunghng and trepidation that there was trouble. Mr. 
Cook made three ineffectual attempts to strap up the nigh fore 
leg and then, to make Cruiser more obedient, gave him a gentle 
cut with his whip. That was enough to arouse the horse's anger, 
irritated and nervous as he was in the glare of the gas lights, 
the rustling crowd and the music of the band. His eyes flashed 
fire in an instant and, with one desperate plunge, he freed his 
leg from the strap. His white teeth were uncovered and, with 
a cry of rage, he rushed upon the terrified ringmaster who turned 




Gold-backed Portfolio and Gold Inkwell Presented to Mr. Rarey by the 
Duchess of Sutherland. 



and fled from the ring, with his assistant. Cruiser then had the 
freedom of the premises and leaped from one side of the ring to 
the other in a high state of excitement. A panic seized the 
audience, for there was only a low barrier for their protection. 
They rushed over the backs of the seats toward the exits ; two 
or three mothers threw their children over into the boxes to save 
their lives, and not a few shrieks were uttered by the affrighted 
women. 

Up to this time, Mr. Rarey, who had gone to the circus to 
see how Cruiser would behave himself in public, had sat calmly 
looking on ; but when matters got to their worst, he left his seat 



Karcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 29 

and went clown into the ring. The crowd paused to see the 
result. Mr. Rarey stood as still as a statue, holding up his hand 
and calling, "Cruiser ! Cruiser !" The horse looked uneasily at 
the motionless figure but, soon recognizing the voice, approached 
slowly, extending his nose. Mr. Rarey let him approach and, 
when he was ([uite near, went to him. stroking him softly on the 



SitttUtt l$t«st. 






/^^ '. ^.. 



X<-^v 2:/. ^."ryi 



Duchess of Sutherland's Note Transmitting Her Gifts. 

face. The maddened horse was again an affectionate slave and 
in three minutes was lying prostrate with IVIr. Rarey cracking 
the whip about his ears with perfect impunity. The result of 
the evening's adventure was the conviction that the most perfect 
system of horse-taming, or of doing anything else, is absolutely 
valueless, if put into the hands of persons who lack the courage, 
patience and judgment which are indispensable in reducing it to 



30 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

practice. It is needless to add that Cruiser was not again per- 
mitted to appear in that circus. 

One of the most thrilHng of the exhibitions that Mr. Rarey 
gave in England was given November 9, 1859, when he tamed 
a powerful and beautiful thoroughbred stallion. It was, said a 
chronicler of the event, a mortal combat between man and beast. 
The moment the animal appeared, it was evident that the tamer's 
powers would be tested to the utmost. The horse looked at the 
audience, stood on his hind feet and ploughed up the ground ; he 
roared in fury and kicked; he snapped at the groom and at Mr. 
Rarey and bit his own flesh severely in his passion. He tore to 
pieces every strap put upon him, hurling to the ground the groom 
who had come to Mr. Rarey 's assistance. At one time the horse 
broke completely away and stood for a moment a victor in the 
midst of the excited audience. Two men came to Mr. Rarey's 
aid, but they were unable to hold the animal which scattered men 
and everything else around him like chaff. He was bathed in 
white foam and clouds of vapor arose from his body. At one 
moment he tossed up the straw, at another he sent the strong 
barriers flying; for a time he stood alone in the arena, roaring 
furiously and tearing with his teeth at everything within reach. 
Mr. Rarey, having rested from the first encounter, approached 
the horse, and then began a contest which no one who witnessed 
it can ever forget. It was a struggle of art and tact against 
overwhelming strength. For an hour the battle continued ; now 
the man had gained the mastery, now the horse ; the animal, 
touching the earth, seemed to derive fresh strength. At last, 
Mr. Rarey extemporized a strap from the fragments of the 
broken bridle and gained his first step to conquest. Still the 
horse fought fiercely, rising and plunging in all directions, en- 
deavoring to bite his tamer or trample him down. A long strug- 
gle ensued. The contest had lasted an hour and a half, when at 
length the horse stood quiet, thoroughly subdued, allowing Mr. 
Rarey to strike his front and hind hoofs together, to jump over 
him and pull him abovit at will. After mounting the horse and 
concluding his lecture from that position, Mr. Rarey led him 
around the arena with a straw. The exhibition proved that, 
whatever tact and science he possessed, he also had most extraor- 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and friend. 31 

dinar}' muscular power, coolness and courage. No ordinary man 
would have ventured to contend to the last with so formidable 
and dangerous an antagonist. On this occasion, as on all when 
Mr. Rarey appeared, there was in a measure a reproduction of 
the exciting scenes of the Roman amphitheater, with none of the 
cruelty. There w^ere the beautiful horses entering the arena, 
with flying mane and dilated nostrils — wild, vicious, neighing, 
snorting, pawnng the earth and placing themselves in a succession 
of fine attitudes, rushing sometimes at, and sometimes aw-ay from 
the man who was to show that he was their master. For the 
most part, the horses were brought before the audience without 
any ])reparation, not even the trainer knowing beforehand the 
character of the animal. This plan gave to each performance the 
interest of originality and put to the greatest test the judgment 
and skill of the tamer. 

There were those who thought Mr. Rarey took risks too 
great, i)articularly when, in demonstrating his complete mastery 
of the horse, he was accustomed to ])ut his head between the 
horse's hoofs. This latter brought to I\Ir. Rarey an anonymous 
protest which is marked by such admiration and good will that 
it is worth reproducing. It read : 

"Sir: The interest and admiration with which I witnessed your 
exhibition on Saturday last induce me to take the liberty of animadvert- 
ing on one part of it. No doubt, your great experience enables you to 
judge with a certain approximation to accuracy of the degree of sub- 
mission to which you have brought a horse. But still, as no rule is 
without an exception, I was sorry to see you run an apparent risk that 
was quite unnecessary, when you lay down with your head between the 
animal's hind hoofs. The act was striking — and why ? Because every 
one felt he was assisting at a wager, in which you staked your life on 
your knowledge of a horse's temper. Now, one of two things : Either 
this implied wager is a real one, in which case all people of reflection 
would think the chances were too unequal to make it justifiable, no man 
having a right to risk his life without an adequate motive ; or it is a 
certainty and, in point of fact, without any risk at all. And in this 
latter case I cannot but feel that an action which seems an appeal to the 
vulgar feeling which takes delight in seeing others in positions of danger 
that the onlookers would themselves shrink from, is unworthy of the 
reality, the absence of sham and humbug that characterize the rest of 
your proceedings. As a further excuse for the liberty I im taking, allow 



32 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

me to mention that, having just now described your victory over the 
King of Oude and also expressed the feeling that I have above stated to 
two ladies (one of whom was a pupil of yours last year), it is in obedi- 
ence to their commands that I thus write. It is useless to sign my name, 
but permit me to subscribe myself an admirer of pluck, daring and in- 
telligence." 

TRIUMPHS ON THE CONTINENT. 

In the fall of 1858, Air. Rarey went to Paris where his fame 
had preceded him. The Emperor appointed a commission to 
witness and report on the American's performances, and speedily 
was assured that the method was rational and successful. Mr. 
Rarey's most notable single achievement there was the taming 
of Stafford, a fiery and utterly intractable half-blood, about six 
years old. His great strength and ferocity made it dangerous 
even to approach him and for a year he had been kept closely 
confined. A numerous assembly, comprising nearly all the mem- 
bers of the Jockey Club, and many noble and distinguished per- 
sonages, was present when Stafford, rearing and plunging in 
such a manner as to tax the strength of two grooms, was brought 
in. As a further precaution the animal had been carefully blind- 
folded, and he was in an utterly vicious mood when turned over 
to the trainer. An hour and a half later, Mr. Rarey rode the 
horse guided by a simple bridle. He then dismounted, unbridled 
the horse and led him around the arena as if he had been the 
most docile omnibus horse. "His submission," said a writer of 
the time, "was the effect neither of fear nor constraint, but 
simply of confidence and affection." This performance won for 
Mr. Rarey the applause of Paris ; the Emperor caused his name 
to be inscribed for 2000 francs on the subscription list, and in 
two days a class of more than five thousand was organized. 
Theophile Gautier, the distinguished novelist, was one of Mr. 
Rarey's admirers and in Le Moniteur Universel, January 21, 
i860, paid him a tribute from which this is quoted : 

"Assurance, thorough knowledge of the horse, the art of statics and, 
let me repeat, a personal influence, magnetic and fascinating, seem to me 
the means employed by Rarey. He astonishes, paralyzes, tires and charms 
the horse, he convinces him logically of his inability to defend himself. 
However, are the animals subdued for long or permanently? The lesson 
forgotten, will thev return to their former character? Will anoth2r 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 33 

than Rarey be able effectively to apply the system? 1 am unable to say, 
and experience only can answer the questions. What pleases me in the 
method of this American subduer is that it is humane — no nose torture, 
no bridling, no whip with cutting thongs, no spurs with sharp points, no 
post of suffering, nothing but kindness, the moral victory, the throwing 
and the idea of inferiority, suggested to the animal in the succession of 
his futile efforts." 

Mr. Rarey'.s visit to Stockholm was characterized by an 
unusually warm reception by the Prince Regent, afterwards 
King, who took occasion to say, on Mr. Rarey's presentation, 
that he had been attentively reading the different accounts of his 
performances and that he had already selected a subject for re- 
formation — a remarkably spirited animal of Arabian and 
English thoroughbred stock, which though four years old, had 
never been Ijroken, except to be led. if gently treated, Ijv the 
halter. The time was set for the test, and the royal riding school 
was especially ])re])ared by the addition of s])len(lid carpets and 
sofas to the already magnificent furniture. The issue was the 
same as it had been so often before. The animal was subdued, 
and the Prince Regent and his guests had an exciting experience 
that l)rought ihem to their feet in a])i)roval. When it was all 
over, the Prince Regent summoned Mr. Rarey, ]nit many ques- 
tions regarding the treatment of horses and finally presented to 
him a medal as a token of special regard. It was a medal bearing 
the motto, "Illis (|uorum mertiere lal)ores" — a social distinction, 
conferring u])on the wearer s])ecial privileges in visiting the royal 
palaces and arsenals, commanding everywhere regard from the 
servants of the King. 

In Berlin, Mr. Rarey had a similarly cordial reception by 
the Prince Regent, later King of Prussia, who alluded to the 
exhibition he had witnessed in London on the evening before the 
marriage of the Princess Royal. He gave exhibitions in the 
royal riding school before members of the Court. In the au- 
dience was Baron Alexander von Humboldt, distinguished 
scientist, who later, on being invited by the American minister 
to dine with Mr. Rarey, expressed the hope that he would be 
"polite enough to live to be present." That desire was gratified 
and. in responding to a toast, the veneralile scholar declared with 



34 



Rarc\, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



much feeling his admiration for America, adding that he had 
always considered himself at least half American. 

A most pressing invitation to visit Russia came to Mr. Rarey 




Baron Alexander von Humboldt. 
Who signally honored Mr. Rarey when he visited Berlin. 

from Colonel Eiaron de Wercinski, who told of the vast number 
of the Czar's cavalry and the great difficulty of breaking the 
horses from the steppes as well as of many noblemen who, being 



Karey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 35 

fond of horses, maintained stables, in recruiting for which both 
men and animals were killed. Mr. Rarey, he was sure, could 
be a great benefactor of the horse empire, if he would come and 
introduce his system. In response to this, Mr. Rarey went to 
St. Petersburg, bearing so many credentials that he was brought 
at once to the notice of men most likely to further his project. 
He went immediately to the residence of Baron Meyendorfif, 
equerry of the Czar, whom he found on the point of going to 
the Neva to witness some national sports. Without ceremony, 
JMr. Rarey was invited to take a seat in the sleigh which pro- 
ceeded to the river as fast as three spirited horses abreast could 
draw it. There he saw thousands of the nobility and common 
people at play. On the solid surface of the ice were erected 
large buildings which seemed intended to last for centuries rather 
than to serve the temporary purpose of a winter season. Thous- 
ands of gay turnouts, filled with ladies, half-buried in costly furs, 
showed the presence of the wealthy classes, while the prominent 
stands designated the nobility. The race-track was a circle 
marked on the ice by green boughs and around the entire ring 
congregated the peasantry on foot or in sleighs. Here Mr. Rarey 
observed that trotting w^as the national pastime and he saw many 
horses whose speed would have made them notable anywhere. 
The style was three abreast, the center horse ornamented with 
a towering yoke, decorated with gay streamers and a tinkling 
bell. After the more formal races had been run, there were 
scrub races wdiich ofifered some unexpected amusement, the hi- 
larity reaching a climax when three half-tamed horses from the 
steppes, entered by an obscure peasant, beat the record of the 
best horses of the Neva. The crowd went wnld over the achieve- 
ment, and the young sprigs of nobility, crowding around the 
owner of the winning horses, carried him about on their shoul- 
ders and at last took him ofif in triumph to the Czar. 

Then came the Laplanders, with reindeer drawing rude 
sleighs, who ofifered for a small sum to give anybody a turn 
around the circle. Many crowded in, and away the loaded 
sleighs went at high speed. The deer were perfectly trained and 
seemed to enter into the sport with all the spirit of the jolly 
throng and their happy masters. 



36 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

A few days after this pleasant introduction to Russian life, 
Mr. Rarey received from the Czar an order to go to one of the 
imperial preserves and bring in a wild horse of the steppes that 
the Cossacks had designed for the imperial stables — an animal 
so wild that he had been left to roam in a deer park. Accom- 
panied by Colonel Lefler, the head of the horse department, and 
two other officers, Mr. Rarey proceeded to the park. Servants 
drove the horse into an enclosure that served as a shelter in in- 
clement weather, and Mr. Rarey entered alone and barricaded 
the door. The contest, marked by the usual screaming and biting, 
lasted for two hours, but the man was victor and rode the animal 
to St. Petersburg. The astonished Czar congratulated him and 
arranged for a private exhibition. 

At the appointed time and place, two peasants brought into 
the presence of the Czar and his court another animal, the wildest 
the steppes could produce. He came rearing, plunging, kicking 
and biting, and Mr. Rarey went quietly to meet him, laying his 
hand on the animal's neck, passing it gently over his ears and 
directly ordering the peasants to loose their hold on the ropes. 
As the horse lost his fierceness, the Czar looked on in amazement 
and asked the peasants, half sternly, half humorously, why they 
could not thus handle the horse. To this they could only reply 
that Mr. Rarey must be in league with the devil. 

IN ENGLAND AGAIN. 

Returning to England, Mr. Rarey gave a series of demon- 
strations at the Royal Alhambra Palace, London, attracting large 
audiences and subduing many vicious horses, including the King 
of Oude, whose owner, Mr. Parr, had decided to have him shot, 
after a vicious assault in which a groom and a pony had been 
nearly killed. As a last effort to save the horse, Mr. Parr took 
him to the American trainer. The horse was brought in by two 
grooms, each holding a leathern thong of considerable length 
attached to a cruel iron bit ; at the end of the struggle, he was 
meekly following wherever the trainer led and welcoming all 
sorts of liberties with his head and heels. The Suft'olk cart 
horse that had won several prizes at the Royal Agricultural So- 
ciety's meeting, but had killed one of his grooms and severely 



Rarcx, the Horse's Master and friend. 



37 



injured another, was in half an hour brought into complete sub- 
jection. Before taming a stylish coach horse of Sheffield. Mr. 
Rarey read to tiie audience a letter from the owner to the effect 







The Duke of Athole. 

that the horse objected to everything except an abundance of 
corn and an unlimited range of pasture ; that no one dared to 
groom him, to ride him was death and to approach him w^as to 



38 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

be bitten. But after the usual contest, Mr. Rarey leaped on the 
horse's back and remained there, in spite of the animal's most 
violent efforts to dislodge him. When the horse reared, the 
trainer threw himself forward ; when he kicked, he was allowed 
free scope ; when he attempted to run away, he was turned 
round and round. Once the trainer let the horse go at full gallop 
down the course, to the evident consternation of the audience ; 
but just as the animal's nose touched the rope which marked 
rather than made the barrier, Mr. Rarey brought him back to 
his haunches, as if by a powerful brake, and then a similar charge 
was made in the opposite direction. The trainer's horsemanship 
was perfect. It delighted the audience, and it ultimately con- 
vinced the horse that his master was upon his back. 

At Manchester, three difficult subjects were ofifered to him 
in one day. One of them was a little cob sire that was never 
trusted without a muzzle ; and so confident was the owner of 
the animal's power to foil the American that he advertised the 
coming combat at his own expense that his friends might all 
be there to see the pony win. The latter was turned unmuzzled 
into the arena, and flew twice at the trainer with all the fury of 
a mastifif. Mr. Rarey eluded the animal the first time and caught 
it as it rose on its legs for the second spring. Then followed 
the usual proceedings of getting acquainted, winning the pony's 
friendship and finally gaining the mastery. It was all so easily 
and quickly done that the great crowd that had gathered, most 
of them to scoff, went away wondering and admiring. 

Mr. Rarey toured England, Ireland and Scotland, visiting the 
Duke and Duchess of Athole, at their beautiful estate, Dunkeld, 
on the river Tay. That estate was one of the most showy places 
in the world, containing many thousand acres of pleasure ground, 
with a hundred miles of walks and drives — a place where the 
nobility delighted to gather and where Queen Victoria and Prince 
Albert had visited for weeks at a time. Game was abundant 
and in his park the duke had twenty thousand deer. Hunting 
and deer-stalking, in company with the duke and his royal guests, 
were among the pleasures enjoyed by Mr. Rarey there. Thence 
he went to the Shetland Islands, where he bought five of the 
smallest ponies to be found, one of which he subsequently gave 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 39 

to an Englishman famed for his undeviating kindness and cour- 
tesy to travelers from America. The Glasgow Citizen, October 
22, 1859, ]mid him this triljute : 

"In appearance Mr. Rarey is decidedly prepossessing, being about 
five feet, nine inches in height, light-haired, light-complexioned, with in- 
telligent eyes, an open countenance and a manner that won the audience 
from the moment that he raised his hat and unaffectedly acknowledged 
their plaudits. He is singularly young for the noise he has made in the 
world, his age being only thirt3-one. He did more to put down the harsh 
and improper treatment of the horse than all the societies formed for 
this purpose and all the sermons preached against cruelty to animals. 
As for Cruiser, he is a fine thoroughbred animal, conscious of blood, 
conscious also, evidently, of the admiration he is accustomed to excite, 
but without any indication of vice about him." 

In Glasgow, ]\Ir. Rarey gave a free lecture to the cabmen 
and carters, for which he was presented with a handsome testi- 
monial by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 
The clergymen of Edinburgh attended his lecture, and so strong 
an impression did his method make that they preached sermons 
in which they alluded to his success as exemplifying the power 
of love and kindness. 

IX AKAHIA AXn THE EAST. 

Leaving Great Britain, Air. Karey went again to Paris, gave 
four exhibitions, declined si)lendid offers to lecture in the French 
provinces, pushed on to Rome and Naples and, by way of Sicily 
and Malta, to Alexandria. In the second week in February, 
i860, he was sailing up the Nile toward Cairo. It was just the 
season for turning the Arab horses out to grass, and there they 
stood up to their knees in it (with an ever-shifting background 
of camels, donkeys and buffaloes, on whose back three or four 
dusky urchins might be seen riding home at nightfall), mile after 
mile in bay, chestnut and flea-bitten gray platoons, about five 
yards apart, and tethered to stakes by one fore and both hind 
legs, so as just to command their allotted range of herbage. At 
Cairo his stay was very limited, although he received a pressing 
invitation from the Viceroy of Egypt to visit him at his country 
seat higher up the river ; but to gaze on the high-caste "children 



40 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

of the star" was his sole mission, and he had no time to hnger. 
He accordingly went at once with his party across the Great 
Desert to the shores of the Red sea and, taking leave of them 
there, merely stepped aside to see the pyramids, as he retraced 
his steps to Alexandria. 

Thence he sailed to a port near Jaffa, and proceeded to 
Jerusalem. It was on a picturesque grassy knoll, hard by a 
grove of olives, that he gave the Pacha a specimen of his art. 
The latter had ordered out for his inspection four of his best 
mares of the purest Nedgedee caste and, after Mr. Rarey had 
ridden one, a spirited gray, he took a brown horse from the 
hands of the attendant eunuch and, with the aid of the two 
little straps, made the animal follow him all about the pasture. 
The gray, whose ragged hips and long neck did not improve 
her, was a little over fifteen hands high and so highly valued 
that her master had refused a thousand pounds for her. 

Then followed an excursion to the Dead sea, which was 
somewhat spoiled by a party of Bedouins, who descended on 
the tent and cooking utensils, made the cook stand and deliver 
his watch and maltreated the solitary soldier for saucily re- 
monstrating. Mr. Rarey and his party were some miles ahead 
at the time ; but the former learned from the incident the lesson 
of caution and left all of his possessions in Damascus when later, 
accompanied only by Major Frazer, of lion-hunting fame, and 
an interpreter, he spent several days in the desert in search of 
horse lore, riding up to every encampment he could descry and 
trusting for food and a night's lodging to the sheiks of the vil- 
lages. 

At Beyrout, on his return, he found the best Arab he had 
seen on his travels, among a lot of twenty which some Sardinian 
officers had got together for their king. Rhodes and Smyrna 
had little to show in this way ; but at Constantinople, he found 
several studs, principally saddle-horses, where the animals were 
thoroughly understood and scientifically handled. The Arabs 
had disappointed him. Their intimate life with the horse from 
the animal's birth had given them complete mastery, but he 
doubted if they had thought out any system or discovered any 
principle by which they could handle a horse entirely new to 



Rarcy. the Horse's Master and Friend. 41 

them. He was conlirnied in this hehef by the helplessness and 
fright they showed when the stallion he was riding on the tour 
refused, one morning, to let one of them bridle him. The 
Prophet was invoked in vain, and hnally Mr. Rarey had to be 
summoned from the tent of the sheik where he was eating brown 
bread and wild honey, to ])ut matters to right — a matter of no 
great difficulty when the crowd of agitated turbans had been 
thrust back a si)ace. 

I5ut Mr. Rarey found beauty in other things as well as in 
the horse. 1 le tells in his diary of camping one night close to 
the foot of Mount Hermon at the ui)per fountain of the Jordan. 
Proceeding thence at daybreak on the road to Damascus, they 
saw .\rab villages built like swallows' nests on the edge of the 
mountain cliff. He met tall, dark-skiiuied, white-I)ear(le(l fath- 
ers, bearing themselves like princes and driving their flocks of 
goats, sheej) and cattle down the winding mountain paths to 
graze in the meadows below. With one of these patriarchs was 
a beautiful Arab girl sitting astride a proud, prancing steed and 
affectionately looking to the care of the kids, whose heads came 
to the top of the pockets on either side of the saddle on which 
she sat. Her picturesque attire — handsome red jacket, full blue 
trousers and thin veil head covering, which she drew closely 
about her face, almost hiding her regular features — completed 
the splendid picture this child of nature made. The men he 
found to be intelligent and manly specimens of their kind. 

During his stay in Constantinojile, Mr. Rarey was a guest 
at the Sultan's palace, where he drank coffee with his hosts and 
smoked a pi])e whose amber mouthpiece was set with diamonds. 

FAREWELL TO ENGLAND. 

Returning to England in the spring of i860, Mr. Rarey 
found himself even more famous than when he left. The news 
of his tri]) had preceded him. Colonel Thomas Seymour wrote : 
"Since his return, men and not horses have gone wild. If he 
could find a way of training the Cruisers of mankind, Christian- 
ity would assign him a place among the Apostles." Mark Lemon, 
editor of Punch, wrote: 'T feel proud of knowing you and still 
I)rouder that I can call you my friend." Both in text and picture. 



42 



Rarey, tJie Horse's Master and Friend. 



Punch paid tribute to the young American and reflected the 
general applause. J. M. Browker, of Calcutta, editor of the 
Indian Field, offered his services in arranging a class, if Mr. 
Rarey would visit India and give a course of lessons in horse- 
training. The invitation was declined, but Mr. Rarey was glad 
to give lessons to Captain Beresford who was later employed 
to carry the art to India. P. C. French, of Southampton wrote : 
"It is to be hoped that the horse will be henceforth better under- 




THB ENOHSII jrePAL. 



THE bWXblBil MEDAi. 



Two Aledals Presented to Mr. Rarey. 



stood and better treated. The subject is now constantly dis- 
cussed, and a dinner seldom passes without your name being 
mentioned in connection with this wonderful power you possess." 
C. Goodchild, of Enfield, wrote, asking for an interview, and 
saying that he could not otherwise tell of the good he had re- 
ceived from the lectures; he had successfully employed the 
method in the training of two ponies and a horse. 

For a free lecture to the cabmen and omnibus drivers of 
London, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and 1-riend. 



43 



Animals presented to Mr. Rarey a splendid gold medal. The 
government employed him to teach his method to two classes of 
cavalry, and so the method was communicated to the entire army. 
Resisting many invitations to make I^ngland his home, he decided 
to return to his native land and. on October 27, i860, gave a 
farewell lecture to an audience of 8.000 in Crystal Palace. In 
the course of his remarks, lie thanked luigland for the great 
kindness he had experienced and hoped that the introduction of 
his method had been of advantage to the cause of humanity. He 
had always sympathized with the noble horse and he was de- 
lighted that he had been able to prove that so much might be 
done by kindness. Returning to America, he would bear the 
most grateful feelings toward the English people. 

With the esteem of all he had met and unsjjoiled by then- 
praise. Mr. Rarey took passage for New York. The Herald of 
November 11. i860, hailed him as "the subjugator of vicious 
steeds, the recipient of honors and decorations from royal and 
imperial hands, the tutor of chevaliers and dames with equestrian 
tastes, the wearer of medals awarded by several humane societies 
of England and Scotland, the modern Centaur." "He is return- 
ing." continued the Herald, "after a three years' absence, during 
which he astonished high and low with proofs of his wondrous 
skill in taming refractory brutes. A cavalcade of our best horse- 
men and Amazons can be formed to escort this American prince 
of horse-tamers from the P.attery to the Fifth Avenue Hotel. 
And why should we not honor Mr. Rarey with a grand reception. 
He is one of those men whose talents have helped to make our 
country famous in other lands. In fact, in all departments of art 
and science, Americans have shown themselves first among the 
foremost. In his own useful way. Mr. Rarey has outstripped 
all the world. The very Arab marvels at his influence over the 
horse, and calls upon Allah to attest his w^onderful power. Is it 
not then highly proper that we should extend a fitting reception 
to the great hors^-^amer? We feel assured that our suggestion 
will be acted on and that Mr. Rarey will meet a welcome worthy 
of him." 



44 



Rare\, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



• - V - '■ I 




M<^, tl 



Q 




,4 






M ^ i 






M 



Rarey, the Horse's Master cnid Friend. 45 

THE AMERICAN TOUR. 

The return of Mr. Rarey, accompanied by Cruiser, now his 
constant companion, was an event in New York. In his head 
there may have been running the hues of a song some generous 
Britisher had written and set to the tune of "Yankee Doodle." 
Two of the stanzas were : 

"The daily news that we receive 
Has set some people frantic, 
Tho' all we hear we don't believe 

That crosses the Atlantic; 
But facts are stubborn things, I guess, 

And tho' opinions vary. 
Each correspondent of the press 
Speaks well of Mr. Rarey. 
Mr. Rarey comes to town 

To tame both horse and pony — 
He'll play the drum and make them dance 
Like Madame Taglione. 

"No doubt there will be many go 

To witness Rarey's system 
Of taming brutes by kindness, and 

With no one to assist him ; 
I hope he'll have a bumper, which 

We safely may declare he 
Deserves for his humanity — 

Success to Mr. Rarey !" 

At any rate, having pt-ei)ared for a continuance of his good 
work in "Yankee Doodle" land by offering a reward of $ioo 
for the most vicious horse brought to him, he hurried ofif to 
Groveport to spend the Christmas vacation at home. In January 
he returned to New York and at Niblo's Garden gave a series 
of exhibitions with Cruiser, his Shetland ponies and such vicious 
horses as were brought to him. Here, as elsewhere in his talks, 
Mr. Rarey declared, as the reporter for Frank LesHe's Illustrated 
Newspaper put it, that "the horse is a creature of impressions ; 
if he fears you, he will run away, if he is angry with you, he will 
attack you — he is a child in intellect and must be treated like 
one. Brute force can never tame a horse completely — there 



46 



Rarc\, the Horse's Master and Friend. 







^ 



r^ \:x:> 






itl 



J 




1-1 9. 



Rarcx, the Horse's Master and friend. 47 

is always a sore si)ot left which will Ijreak out at the hrst oppor- 
tunity. The horse must be convinced by humane treatment and 
undeviating firmness that man is his natural master." A wild 
South American pony, a vicious stallion believed by his owner, 
E. Luff, of Harlem Lane, to be "the worst animal in the world," 
unbroken colts and an iron gray, "as big as the Great Eastern" 
were all successfully treated with varying degrees of ease. 

PRAISED BY INTELLECTUALS. 

Having instructed, entertained and convinced New York, 
Mr. Rarey moved on to Boston, where he gave similar lectures 
and demonstrations. Like the horses, the intellectuals of that 
citv were soon at his feet. Said the Courier of that city: 

"Whatever credit may be clue — and doubtless much credit is due 
to others for their contributions in the way of observation and experi- 
ment to the new method of horse-taming — it is Mr. R.-irey alone who 
can justly claim the admiration and gratitude of the wr.rld for having 
sifted, analyzed, harmonized and co-ordinated all the isolated facts into 
a complete and rational method. These facts lay scattered in the brains 
of horse-breakers throughout the world, but they were used empirically, 
applied in ignorance of their true value and in con j unction with cruel, 
barbarous and absurd practices, which went far to neutralize their effect 
and obscure their true relation and value. * * * The Rarey rules are 
not abstruse or difficult of apprehension. They are capable of being 
simply stated and easily learned, but they are far from being so easily 
applied. The difficulty, however, lies not in the rules themselves, but in 
the nature of man. The first and great one, without compliance with 
whicli all the others avail but little, is complete self-control on the part 
of him who would succeed as a trainer of horses. The Bible tells us 
that he who ruleth himself is greater than he who taketh a city, and the 
fame of the conquerors of Monterey and Mexico show how great by 
the popular voice are the city takers. Now, greater t'nan these, if we 
accept the dictum of Holy Writ, is Rarey, the horse-tamer, and so great 
must every man be who would rival him. If an am])ition to rank among 
the subduers of horses shall cause an augmentation of those who can 
keep their temper, this will not be one of the least of the benefits for 
which the world will have to thank Mr. Rarey." 

From William Lloyd Garrison, the distinguished publicist, 
who spent many of the best years of his life in the abolition 
cause, came the following letter, under date of April 5, 1861 : 



48 Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

"I was much gratified at the brief interview had with you this fore- 
noon, as it deepened my conviction of your fitness to teach the world a 
great and everywhere needed lesson of humanity, whereby in teaching 
them how to subdue the most refractory animals, men might learn to 
govern their own passions, and thus substitute the law of love for the 
spirit of brutality. The modesty of your deportment also evinced the 
possession of self-respect and self-reliance, which are the antagonism 
of self-seeking and self-glorification, and quite essential to the character 
of a true philanthropist and reformer. 

"I can only renew the expression of my deep interest in your hu- 
mane mission, hoping that your labors will be extended to every part of 
Christendom and that your life, as benefactor and redeemer, may be 
long spared. For all that you are doing for the relief and true govern- 
ment of the noblest and at the same time the most abused and over- 
tasked of the animal race, allow me, in parting, pleasantly to invoke for 
you (if you will excuse the pun) the horsepitality of ihe world — by 
which I mean, may you meet with a kind and hearty reception wherever 
you travel. 

"Yours, to augment human happiness and lessen ajiimal suffering, 

"William Lloyd Garrison." 

Another interesting Boston letter was from E. H. Hepworth, 
who wrote : 

"I want to express my gratitude for the exhibition of last week. 
I feel that you are accomplishing a great good. I have always loved the 
horse and have suffered great pain in seeing him frequently abused. I 
cannot help feeling that he is a noble animal and that his reasoning 
power is far beyond what is commonly acknowledged. The Arab gets 
more out of his horse than the American can, and the Arabian horse is 
said to know more than any other animal. But I have for a time thought 
that the difference is one, or rather mostly one, of education. We do 
not yet know what our horses are capable of doing and being, because 
we mostly spoil them in 'bringing up.' I have to express the hope that 
all who have to do with horses will hear and heed you, and remain your 
obedient servant, ..g. H. Hepworth." 



IN CHICAGO AND PHILADELPHIA. 

The throng- that gathered in Bryan Hall, Chicago, December 
21, 1861. went with the same incredulity that marked the mental 
attitude of audiences elsewhere. Many went, as they confessed, 
to see Mr. Rarey fail. After the trainer had explained his 
method of handling Cruiser, a narrative which was listened to 



Rarey, the Horse's Master and Friend. 49 

with rapt attention by the immense audience, a large, wicked- 
looking black horse was brought onto the platform, which had 
been covered with boards topped with sawdust and protected by 
a barricade and hempen cable. The animal was addicted to 
biting and kicking and not drawing quietly in harness. Only 
a day or two before, while working beside another animal, this 
horse had kicked himself free of harness and wagon and attacked 
his mate with his teeth, and had been beaten away with clubs. 
When brought out by the assistants, he paused, gazed at the 
thousands of human faces before him. and gave a frantic leap 
and a series of evolutions. After dragging the trainer several 
times about the stage, his hind heels more than half of the time 
in the air, the strap was buckled on, the assistant retired and Mr. 
Rarey was left alone with tlic vicious animal. Twenty minutes 
later, to the wonder and astonishment of the spectators, the 
horse was being led around the enclosure by a single straw, as 
docile and submissive as a pet fawn. Mr. Rarey mounted him, 
got beneath him, put his head between the dangerous hoofs and 
thrust his bare hand into the animal's mouth. The wild spirit 
of the horse had api)arently been turned to affection. 

On January jf), 1862. Mr. Rarey gave a matinee ])erform- 
ance to the usual crowded house at Niblo's Garden. New York, 
taming three vicious horses to the complete satisfaction of the 
most incredulous. He gave a second demonstration there, do- 
nating half the proceeds to the Widows' and Orphans' fund. 

His first appearance in Philadelphia was in the .Academy 
of Music, and marked a decided innovation in the history of that 
institution, the entire equipment of which was turned over to 
him for three exhibitions. The courts and green rooms, sacred 
to prima donnas and dashing baritones, were relinquished to 
intractable stallions, unamiable colts, Shetland ponies and Mile- 
sian hostlers. When ]\Ir. Rarey appeared upon the stage, the 
house was filled to its last seat and all the standing room was 
occupied. "His voice." wrote a reporter, "was quick and full 
and could be heard with distinctness almost all over the house. 
He has a fund of dry humor in his composition that makes his 
lectures extremely interesting. Cruiser was brought before the 
audience, led by a single groom, and pranced about with eager- 



50 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

ness and apparent pride. He is a splendid specimen of horse- 
flesh, of a beautiful dark bay color, of glossy skin black in the 
limbs and very straight, an action as fvdl of ease as it is of 
animation, and with the mild eye that is characteristic of 
thoroughbred racers. Most of Mr. Rarey's method was illus- 
trated by Cruiser. He was completely successful in his efforts, 
which were applauded by the spectators." 

The second exhibition was attended by even greater delight 
and enthusiasm, on the part of the audience, than was the first. 
"Mr. Rarey," said one of the papers of the time, "is rapidly be- 
coming a lion. He is talked of in every circle; even the ladies 
converse freely of him and horses generally. Music Hall is no 
longer remembered as a concert, lecture, fair or preaching temple, 
but as an arena in which equine miracles are performed, as a 
theatre in which all manner of ugly and vicious horses are sub- 
dued and made gentle and plastic. Inasmuch as it teaches the 
great principle that kindness is greater than force, gentleness than 
brutality — that a little common sense is better than a great deal 
of whip — we regard the purpose to which the hall has been put 
as most excellent. It is as good as so many sermons to teach 
men to become humane and sensible." 

When Mr. Rarey had explained that he had come, not as a 
gladiator, but as an educator to teach that a horse is bad only 
as he is badly treated, Cruiser was brought in and made his 
obeisance to the assembly by gracefully turning his neck, putting 
forward his right foot and moving his ears back and forth. The 
next horse afforded a good subject for Mr. Rarey's art. He 
leaped, kicked, reared and performed other antics showing his 
intractability, but, as usual, he was soon under control, proving 
again the virtue of the method of the trainer. 

The third exihibition, for which, in spite of the intensely 
cold weather, the house was again packed, marked the climax 
in interest ; and so insistent were the demands for more that Mr. 
Rarey consented to remain for two more exhibitions, which were 
given on the following Thursday and Saturday. 

On his second visit to Boston, Mr. Rarey appeared in Music 
Hall and for five nights the statue of Beethoven looked down 
upon an unwonted spectacle. "Such things were never dreamed 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and l-'rieiid. 51 

of," said one writer, "when this magniJicent temple was dedi- 
cated to Apollo ; but, when we remember that, without the horse, 
the violin and violoncello would be mute, we must concede the 
noblest of domestic animals the right of entrance upon a stage 
where horse hair is so potent." In the audiences were repre- 
sentatives of all classes of society. There were, as somebody 
said, "clergymen, lawyers, merchants, scholars, poets, literary 
hacks and illiterate hackmen." — ex-President Franklin Pierce, 
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Wendell Phillips and others less dis- 
tinguished and sooner forgotten. One-half of the proceeds of 
his final exhibition was given to the charities of the city, and the 
verdict of the press, when he left was that he had made an in- 
delible impression on the lioston public by the wonderful success 
of his method, which proved but an illustration of the law of 
kindness. 

"1 have not seen," said Ralph Waldo Emerson, "that any 
of our colleges have bestowed on Mr. Rarey the diploma of 
Doctor of Laws. Yet what excuse have we, after the exhibition 
of Mr. Rarey 's treatment of the horse, for the use of lirute 
force? He has turned a new leaf in civilization, and I think 
the Board of Education of Massachusetts would not take an 
unwise step, if they should engage the master to go to each col- 
lege and teachers' convention in the state and explain his treat- 
ment. What extension, what novelty in his fundamental maxim 
that he who would deal with a horse must know neither fear 
nor anger! When I saw his ])erformance. I could not help 
thinking it was a sort of Aesop's fable and suspecting that he 
was a very sly satirist and that he must know and feel what 
sarcastic lessons he was reading schools and universities." 

GIVES HIS METHOD TO THE ARMY. 

Early in December, 1862, I\Ir. Rarey received the following 
letter : 

"Headquarters of the Army, 

Washington, D. C, 
"Mr. John S. Rarey: December 6, 1862. 

"Sir : You are hereby authorized to visit the Army of the Potomac 
for the purpose of inspecting the horses and mules of the cavalry, artil- 



52 Rarcy. the Horse's Master and Friend. 

lery and teams belonging to that army. All officers of t''e Army of the 
Potomac are directed to afiford every facility to Mr. Raiey to make this 
inspection. 

"By order of Major General Halleck, General-in-Chief. 

"Very respectfully, your obedient sej^vant. 

"J. C. Kelton, a. D. G." 

Mr. Rarey accepted the invitation, made the inspection and 
communicated to the army officers his method of training the 
horse. The method was adopted, and its principles are today 
to be found in the army regulations. Here is an excerpt from 
Mr. Rarey's diary, written while he was making the inspection : 

"On Saturday, December 14, 18(i2, the third day uf the battle. I 
stood on the bluff of the Rappahannock, this side of Fredericksburg, and 
witnessed the battle for some time. Two or three shells fell near me. 
In the afternoon of the same day, through the kindness of Professor 
Lowe, I went up alone in a balloon to watch the fight. A shot was fired 
directly at me, but passed under the balloon. Had to change my loca- 
tion." 

Retvu^ning from the inspection, in the course of which every 
courtesy had been accorded him, Mr. Rarey gave a lecture in 
Smith & Nixon's hall, Cincinnati, to one of the largest audiences 
ever within its walls. The lecture and his mastering of vicious 
horses were attended with the usual interest and success. In 
February, 1862, at the request of his nephew, C. W. Fairington, 
Mr. Rarey went to Havana, where he gave a successful demon- 
stration before a large audience in which were the Captain-Gen- 
eral of Cuba and other dignitaries. His talk was interpreted to 
the audience, but he writes in his diary that he was "convinced 
that they had no idea or appreciation of my art." At the second 
exhibition, he had no interpreter. He simply illustrated his 
method first by attempting to ride the horse before taming him 
and, second, by taming him and riding him afterward. This 
aroused their interest, but did not enlighten them as to the 
method ; they clung to the idea that they had witnessed a struggle 
like a bull-fight. "Probably," he says, "they would have been 
better pleased, had blood been spilled. I am glad there were 
present a number of Cubans who were anxious that some of my 
principles might be instilled into the dumb negroes and low ere- 



Karcy, the Horse's Master and 1-riend. 53 

oles, whose only thought was to beat the poor creatures under 
them and over which they were permitted to exercise the author- 
ity of master." 

At Alatanzas, before an audience in which there were many 
appreciative Americans, he subdued a \ery vicious mule. A 
Spanish nobleman presented him with a Ijeautiful ring which he 
said was of great antiquity and was boitght from the collection 
of a French minister, and which showed a hne engraving of the 
head of Hercules. 

Returning to New York, Mr. Rarey gave a series of exhi- 
bitions at Xiblo's Garden, entertaining on alternate nights with 
Edwin Forrest, the great tragedian of the day. There offers 
were made to him for a series of lectures in the United States 
and Canada, but he declined them, preferring to direct his own 
activities, lecturing where and when he jileased. 

In Allyn Hall. Hartford, Conn., Mr. Rarey gave an exhi- 
bition which was notable for his illustration of the proper man- 
ner of moiuiting into the saddle, lie condemned the ordinary 
way of standing off from the horse. a])proaching him at a right 
angle and pulling and straining on the saddle to the great danger 
of turning it over in spite of the girth. The correct way, he 
said, was to stand close by the horse's shoulder, facing the same 
way as the horse and then, with left hand on the rein near the 
bit and right hand over the saddle, rise into the seat by a motion 
that seems literally as graduated and even as the ascent from 
one stair to another. Indeed, it seemed to be identical with that 
motion. There was no percej)tible springing or vaulting, but all 
was as quick and easy as the stepping from one stair up to 
another. And this he did, with no girth to hold the saddle on. 

In September, 1862. Mr. Rarey gave an exhibition in Co- 
lumbus. Ohio, at the old .\theneum. Of this the Ohio State 
Journal of the 2nd said : 

"We do not feel justified in leaving the exhibition of Mr. Rarey's 
horse-training powers to the brief notice of a local column. His exhibi- 
tions are not so much for the show as for the utility that may be de- 
rived from them. And no man who has sufficient native capacity to love 
a spirited and noble horse can witness Mr. Rarey's wonderful display 
of power over that finely organized animal, without learning much that 



54 Rarcy, the Horse's Master and Friend. 

is both useful and humane. Mr. Rarey is not empiric in any sense. His 
method is as truly philosophical as any inductive science can be. As a 
gentleman, he is sincere, thoughtful and unpretending. He assigns, in 
clear and direct language, a just and indisputable reason for the proposi- 
tions he submits, in regard to the training of the noble animal whose 
whole nature, physiological and psychological, he has so thoroughly and 
successfully studied. The elaboration of the chemist for the demonstra- 
tion of the affinities of matter are not more purely scientific than are 
Mr. Rarey's demonstrations of the philosophical mode of training the 
powers of the horse to pleasant and profitable subjection to the human 
will. He is therefore always heard by the most intelligent people with 
the utmost interest and respect. 

"On the present occasion. Mr. Rarey, who is a sound patriot, at the 
suggestion of certain estimable ladies who are steadily toiling for the 
good of our soldiers, voluntarily tendered his services tor an evening's 
exhibition as a benefit for the funds of the Soldiers' Aid Society. His 
offer was gladly accepted ; and a splendid benefit it was. The Atheneum 
was literally packed with one of the most intelligent and genteel audi- 
ences that ever assembled in our city. And when it is considered that 
most of the tickets were at |1 each, the substantialness of the benefit 
may be inferred. 

"After taming one horse and exhibiting three Shetland ponies, one, 
a colt, twenty inches high and weighing twenty-one pounds, was brought 
forward in the arms of a boy ; it looked more like a shaggy dog than 
anything of the genus equinus, though it afterwards cantered about the 
stage with much activity and grace. Next came the spirited, but spoiled 
and vicious brute, with which Mr. Rarey was to try conclusions. It was 
a compact and powerfully built horse, in good condition, but dangerous 
and vicious beyond all control. His owner sent his character with him 
and expressed a very reasonable apprehension for Mr. Rarey's safety in 
handling him. This horse was a total stranger to Mr. Rarey, and the 
first demonstrations that attended their acquaintance entirely justified the 
amiability of character that his owner's letter had so honestly certified 
to. His hind feet were aimed at the reformer's personnel. These ex- 
hibitions of the brute's tender mercies towards Mr. Rarey were rapidly 
repeated, exciting the audience as with a touch of tragic. But the calm 
and steady manner of Mr. Rarey, as he watched the equine performance 
of the Highland fling, speedily dispelled all apprehensions for his safety. 
His complete success with this animal elicited great apphuse." 

PLANNED A BOOK ON THE HORSE. 

Mr. Rarey planned an illustrated book on the horse, in four 
parts and seventy-three chapters, and in 1862 entered into an 
agreement with Air. Pliny Miles to make the necessary research 



Rin-c\. the Horse's Master and Friend. 



55 



and prepare the copy. A complete outline of the book, with Mr. 
Miles' acknowledgment of receipt of the specifications, is among 
Mr. Rarey's papers; also several letters from ]\lr. Miles touching 
his progress in the work. 

Part I was to have been devoted to the natural history of 
the horse and other beasts of burden, together with mention of 
the horse in history, poetry, mythology and art; Part' II, to a 
history and description of the different races and l)reeds of 
horses in all countries; Part III. to horse taming, training, breed- 
ing and management, and Part 1\', to a history of horse exhibi- 




Thc Mansion Built liy John S. Rarey. 



tions, circuses and shows, ancient and modern, horse fairs and 
associations and a plan of an American Horse association. This 
last-named association was to be national in scope and was to 
hold meetings annually in different parts of the country, with 
j)remiimis and prizes for the best specimens of horses exhibited, 
and prizes for the best essays on designated topics relating to 
the breeding, training and management of horses. A "Rarey 
medal," provided each year by the interest on an investment by 
Mr. Rarey in government bonds, was to be one of the essay 
prizes. 



56 



Rarcv, the Horse's Master and Friend. 



Mr. Miles began his research in the Astor and other hbra- 
ries of New York, but soon went to London, where the facihties 
for his work were better. On December 20. 1862, he wrote that 






'• '"■v'ji'^mW 






Monument to John S. Rarey in Groveport Cemetery. 



the manuscript was nearly ready, but there is no further knowl- 
edge of it. Probably it was never sent ; certainly it was never 
published. The only jndjlished work by Mr. Rarey was his little 



Rarcy, the Horse's Master and l-riend. 57 

book of instructions on horses which sold for $io. This book 
was pirated, so laden with trash as to be unrecognizable and 
sold to the great profit of the pirates, for $2.50. 

On the site of the house in which he was born, Mr. Rarey 
built a mansion where he entertained many a national celebrity, 
and made a home for his aged mother, to whom he showed the 
utmost devotion. l}y this time his health had begun to decline. 
His years abroad and at home had been strenuous. In the train- 
ing of horses his physical .strength had been continuously taxed 
and his great po])ularity had forced 'upon him extraordinary 
social duties. In consequence, he suffered, in December. 1865. 
a stroke of paralysis, from which he never recovered. He spent 
the subsequent summer at White Suljjhur Sjirings and returned 
to Groveport where he lived cjuietly. hoping to regain strength 
for another visit to Kuro])e. Accompanied by his niece, Mrs. 
Elizabeth Williams, he went to Cleveland for a visit and, while 
there, died. October 4, 1866. The remains were brought to 
Groveport and at the Rarey mansion there, on the 7th, were held 
the funeral services which were attended by friends from all 
parts of the country. In accordance with his wish, the burial 
was made in the village cemetery beside the grave of his father. 

Cruiser survived his master and friend nine years, dying at 
the Rarey farm. July 6. 1875. in the twenty-third year of his 
age. Mr. Rarey. whose fame he had shared, amply jirovided in 
his will for the comfort and care of the noble animal that had 
shared his triumphs and hafl helped to impress upon the world 
the imi)ortant lesson that kindness is power. 



